My First Contact

I humbly apologize for my week of silence. I have been writing, rewriting, and procrastinating this entry for fear that I shall not present the facts correctly. From what I have written so far, you may think that faeries are in the same category as rapists, kidnappers, or monsters; to be feared and avoided. Half yes, half no. Of course there are good and bad faeries. Some will use humans as toys or slaves. Others are looking for human mates to honestly share their lives with. The rest are only in it to practice their magic, or for the practical joke. I wouldn’t say faeries are monsters -- it’s not as if they’ll eat you. Goblins will, though.

Having human blood in the faery world is prized. Especially royal blood. The diversity of DNA and the connection with human history allows access to certain portals into the human world that would otherwise be off-limits. There are many other benefits that would take too long to list. Snatching a human mate has been a respected and difficult tradition in the faery kingdom for ages. They have to keep you there, you see. They have to stop you from remembering who you really are. The will of a human is his or her only defence against faery magic.

Now, moving on to my faery.

The scary part is that I’ve never seen a face that I’ve trusted more than his before -- or since. Meeting him was like a reunion. It was like the feeling you get when you start to crave ice cream, and then remember that you bought ice cream just yesterday, and you’ve already eaten lunch! It may have just been the handsome human disguise, but he looked amazing. He was tall and slim, had great hair, a slender, nicely-cut face, and lovely eyes.

When I met this faery, I didn’t know who he was, but I already liked him. I was standing next to him, watching the dancers, and he turned around and smiled at me as if I was his best friend, holding out his hand.

“Dance with me.” His voice had a very slight tinge of a foreign accent, but I couldn’t place it. I accepted gladly, and he whirled me away quite literally, being a fantastic dancer.

It was a pleasantly cool night for the month of May, but the room was muggy and hot with the many college students waltzing about, so we stepped outside. Surrounding the building were gardens and grassy clearings, so we went for a stroll through the gardens, but not very far away -- I could still hear the music from the dance, though faintly. We walked between two cedar hedges, and I realized I didn’t recognize this part of the gardens.

“Wait, where are we? I’ve never seen this place before.”

“Not many people have.” he answered, smiling. “You’re in the faery world.”

I smiled back, thinking it was a joke. “Very funny. And why would you take me to such a grand, exotic place?”

“Because I like you. Come, I’ll show you the view!” The faery took my hand and ran with me through a meadow and up a hill. From there we could see the lights of the of campus, and the city, although they looked somewhat hazy and distant. He let go of my hand for a second, and I shivered, as if waking up.

“That is lovely.” I told him. “But I ought to be getting back.”

“What? But you just got here!”

“I’m sorry, but the dance will be over soon, and I should go home.” I started walking back.

“Why not stay here? Dance here!” The faery stopped me, but gently. “Dance with me, Ashlyn.”

I looked him in the eye. Incidentally, his eyes were purple. And he was smiling. This made him irresistible. I could hear music, and it was the instrumental waltz that I’d heard at the ballroom dances a few times before: a song full of longing. The stage was set. It was something from a movie, designed and directed by Hollywood’s finest.

So give me a break. I was only nineteen. We danced a waltz to the most beautiful song I’ve ever heard, in the silvery moonlight, and when the song was over, he put his hands on my face and kissed me. You may not be interested in the details, but that was a very nice kiss.

“Stay with me, Ashlyn.” the faery asked again.

I felt a bit dizzy. “Okay -- Wait, no. No. I have work, and homework, and I’ve got to give my roommate a ride home tonight, and I can’t just leave.” It wasn’t that I had so much to do that stopped me, though. My senses were whirling, something wasn’t clicking, and these things helped me feel grounded in reality.

He looked disappointed. “You’ve made your choice, then?”

“Well, I can’t forget myself and go gallivanting off with a man I only just met. I’m sorry. I have to go back for now.”

He sighed. “Then I can’t stop you.” We walked back to the cedar hedges, and I paused.

“You never told me your name.”

“You won’t remember it.”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

His smile was sad. “I’m a faery, Ashlyn. You’re not supposed to remember me.” He raised his hand to my forehead, and I woke up at the edge of the gardens, facing the building that was hosting the dance.

           I didn’t remember a thing. I thought I had only gone out for some air alone. After that I would feel sad, like I’d lost a friend, or that I was missing someone. Mood swings, they told me. I think that’s only true half of the time. But true or not, the faery failed to properly snatch me. He let me go rather easily, in fact. But that was only the first time we met.